Footsteps into Africa

Tag Archives: paul theroux

Open sewer in small-town Lushoto (25,000 inhabitants). Imagine this in a city of several million

An image is firmly rooted in my mind now, though I hadn’t dared to take my camera on the bajaj (motor-rickshaw) drive through Mikocheni and Mwenge neighbourhoods: there are loads of people on the streets, as always, watching the world go by, or carrying things, or selling something. Among them, one man is sitting, relaxing, feet propped up, and just below his feet passes an open drain, a channel of the city’s plastic and grime and shit and junk.

Maybe it’s because I’d had a break from the city, some clear air and fresh vegetation for a few days – but somehow seeing that today filled me with disgust. Continue reading →